I went through three or four months of research. At first I thought I would stick with DSLR since I had some very nice Nikon glass. I tried a sling strap to make it seem lighter but that did nothing to hide or manage the bulk. It just wasn't working and I was having no fun. I just could not see myself upgrading to a D-600 or D-400 (if ever) and having that solve the weight or bulk problem.

So that is when I turned to looking at mirror-less. I looked hard at the Panasonic line, Sony NEX series, the Olympus OMD and the Fugifilm X cameras. In the end I chose the X-E1 because:

It has an APS-C sensor which is a bit bigger than the OMD 4/3rds

It has great lens options

It has an appealing retro feel

It has an integrated flash (Small but there in time of need)

It has good low light capability and a wide dynamic range

AND it is small and light...........and I'm sure the list goes on but the fun will be in exploring

I was strongly considering the OMD because of the weather sealing and mature system (lenses) but the primary sticking point for me was the sensor size and the lack of integrated flash. Great camera though. The Panasonic did not appeal to me on looks and feel and the Sony just did not have the lenses to compete with the other three.

Anyway, I made a decision to go with Fuji and I don't think I will be sorry. But then I don't think I would have been sorry with the OMD or maybe even the Panasonic. The Sony lens selection and quality would have been an issue though and Nikon was not under serious consideration due to the sensor size.

The X-E1 shows up tomorrow.....Oh Boy early Christmas. O yea and I sold my Nikon kit to fund this so I'm on the plus side with upper management! At least for the moment.